Seasons of Love
by TheGr8Escape
Summary: 4 seasons and 4 days that mark the pivotal moments in Finn and Rachel's inevitable journey back to each other. Finchel reunion fic.
1. Spring

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or any of its characters, obviously.**

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AN: This is the first time I've ever written anything fictional whatsoever, but I thought I'd give it a try, so I'd love to have some constructive criticism! This isn't beta'd, so all mistakes are mine and I'm not a native English speaker, so bear with me.

**XXX **

**Spring – March 18**

At exactly 12.01 in the morning, Rachel is startled awake by a roaring sound of thunder resonating in he night. There's a brief moment of silence followed by a flash of lightening, bathing the outlines of her bedroom in a soft yellow glow. As if it were some sort of sign from above, a curtain of thick raindrops falls down from the sky onto the busy streets of New York City, causing a steady tapping sound against her window.

Instantly wide awake, she starts counting the seconds to check if the storm's close by, but before she even gets to 3, another massive _boom_ breaks the silence again. Carefully steadying her breath, she tries to calm herself down by humming a soft tune. Ever since that night in August, when lightning had struck the old tree in her parent's front yard - which had subsequently missed her bedroom window by a few inches in its fall - she hated thunderstorms with a fiery passion. She still hates them now, even though there are no trees in her close proximity. The lightning makes it seem as if _Monkey_ – her childhood stuffed animal, and named after her favorite children's book– is staring at her with his one black beady eye (the other one has long been lost) from his usual place at the edge of her purple comforter, and the new designer dress that's hanging from her closet is casting creepy shadows on her bedroom walls.

You'd think an 18-year old girl, taking the big apple by storm would be fearless by any means, but truth be told, she thinks being alone in the city is proving to be a lot scarier that she'd originally thought. She isn't totally alone of course, she shares the apartment with Kurt, her gay best friend, but it's different from _really_ having someone you can entrust your biggest secrets to, and who won't judge you for them, no matter what. The only people who know about her slightly irrational fear of thunderstorms are her dads and well… one other person she doesn't particularly want to think of right now.

_Flash_

Her room lights up again. She contemplates waking Kurt with some lame excuse, like making up she heard someone trying to get into their apartment or something, just so she wouldn't have to be alone right now. Eventually she decides against it, cause one, it sounds ridiculous (who would go out stealing in this terrible weather), and two, she's making herself feel even worse by thinking about some stranger breaking in. As if on cue, every shadow on the wall suddenly looks like the dark silhouette of a man, so she quickly closes her eyes, pulling the sheets all the way over her head.

_This is ridiculous._

_There's no one in your room, Rachel._

_Boom_

A deafening roar reverberates through her room again. Thunder and lightning are almost coming at the same time now, which tells her the storm is raging right above their building in full force. How is Kurt even not awake right now? He is such a heavy sleeper; he would probably sleep through an explosion if it happened in the next room. A coppery taste fills her mouth, she's biting her lip so hard, it started bleeding.

_Flash Boom_

_Flash Boom_

She's attempting to avert a serious panic attack, while simultaneously trying her best not to break into tears. Her eyes are still closed, hands gripping her sheets like a lifeline and humming the refrain of _somewhere over the rainbow_ over and over and over. She wouldn't be this scared if _he_ was here. He always had this way to make her feel safe, like no one else could. Finn. Her chest starts to hurt just thinking his name, but she's not going to cry. She's not.

She actually thought she had been doing a great job not thinking of him the last couple of months, but lately she has been having a lot of those _what if_-moments. She doesn't know why they all come to her now all of a sudden, but does there really need to be a reason? It's not like it even matters anymore, anyway. Finn is in her past. She has Brody now, and although their relationship is still in its beginning stages, she thinks she might finally be ready to move on, so why not with him, right?

_Brody won't help you now, though. He'll probably think you're being crazy again._

_No he won't._

_Like he told you you were being crazy for expecting from him he wouldn't sleep with Cassandra. Your mortal enemy if I may add._

_That might have been a little insensitive of him but - _

_You should call Finn._

_No._

_Why not? You know you want to. You've been fake-butt-calling him on purpose non-stop. Wouldn't his voice make this nightmare a thousand times better?_

_He doesn't want to talk to me. He said so himself when I went to see the musical._

_You called him at the annual winter showcase…He didn't seem to mind then._

_I don't want to bother him in the middle of the night. _

_Stop making excuses for yourself. If you want to call him, just call him. _

She sends him a text message instead. _'There's a thunderstorm raging outside of my room. It's really scary." _As she presses the send button_, _Rachel's already regretting she cracked so easily; whatever her common sense may tell her, her heart always seems to have a mind of its own. Her fear is just _so_ suffocating right now, that she can't think straight anymore. She's frustrated with herself for showing so little self-control, but at the same time she really hopes he'll text her back. (She won't admit to herself how desperately she needs to hear from him right now.)

10 minutes later, he still hasn't texted her back. Holding her cell phone in a vice-grip, she watches her screen go into lock mode for the 6th time, knuckles turning white from squeezing the device so tightly. Letting out a ragged breath, that actually sounds more like a desperate sob, she wills the black screen to light up, but a few minutes later, still nothing's happened. Just as she's setting herself up for the imminent disappointment, her phone starts vibrating.

He's calling her.

She didn't expect him to call, so she's momentarily paralyzed, just staring at the little screen with Finn's name and picture on it (She never had the heart to delete it). Finally after the 5th ring, she wakes out of her stupor and gathers the courage to answer.

"Rachel?"

The sudden sound of his voice causes goose bumps to appear all over her body. She doesn't reply immediately, so he repeats her name, making sure there's really somebody there on the other side of the line. When she realizes he's waiting for some response, aside from her heavy breathing he can undoubtedly hear through the phone, she quickly stammers a reply.

"Yeah, I'm here." Her voice sounds muffled and weird through the darkness in the confined space of tangled sheets she's wrapped herself in.

She hears him sigh a breath of what sounds like relief. "I thought you hung up on me for a moment there." He chuckles a little; probably causing the little dimple she adores so much to appear on the right side of his cheek. "Are you okay?" he asks softly then, voice suddenly serious again.

"I-I'm fine" her voice cracks the moment she says it. Pretending she's fine proves to be a lot more difficult when it comes to Finn. He'd always been able to tell exactly what she was thinking or feeling without her having to tell him so; no matter how long they haven't seen or spoken to each other, some things just never change. So much pent up emotions have been gathering in her throat – partly because of the storm, partly from hearing his voice again – she can't contain another heartbreaking sob escaping her lips.

She tries not to sound so pathetic, but she can't help it; this breakdown has been a long time coming.

"Don't cry, baby" He's trying to comfort her but he's making it worse without even realizing it. The fact that he still subconsciously calls her baby, makes her want to curl up in a ball and lock herself in her room with a giant bucket of Ben & Jerry's and Funny girl on repeat. Granted she's _already_ hiding under her sheets, she's not that far from said scenario, anyway.

As she grips her pillow a little tighter, she manages to choke out a strangled "I'm scared" before the flow of tears starts again.

"Hey - don't be. There's nothing to be scared of." He answers in a soothing voice, attempting to calm her down.

In her heart she knows that, though it's not so much the storm itself that scares her so much, it's the thought of being alone during it. She's afraid of not having that one person who knows her better than anyone, and will always be there for her; that person who will hold her hand when she's scared, no matter how ridiculous it is, kissing her till her head spins and she forgets how to breathe.

He's that person - right in this moment she's never been more sure of anything in her life - and he will always be that person for her. Every other guy along the way will just end up being a poor substitute.

There was a time she had no doubt in her mind they would end up together, but that invisible string that's always been there before - connecting them, pushing them together and pulling them apart like magnets - she feels it growing weaker every day. Their once strong tether has been replaced by a thin thread, she's desperately trying to hold on to.

Right now, it dawns on her that while she's having her own little identity crisis here in New York, he might not just be sitting around waiting for her to come to her senses. She thinks she might have already lost her soulmate without even noticing. Hearing his voice again after such a long time, while the rain is battering against her windowpane is just strengthening the realization of her utter loneliness.

"Talk to me," he says then, abruptly pulling her out of her thoughts, "tell me about New York."

"What?" The lightness of the topic confuses her for a moment.

"Tell me about New York, I want to hear about it."

So she does. She tells him all insignificant details about her life in the big city, conveniently leaving everything Brody out. She tells him about her dance classes, with her still horrible as ever teacher, and about how she's a shoe in for the leading role in a – quite unconventional - student film project. An audible gasp escapes his lips when she reveals she's going to be doing a topless scene, immediately after that going into a rant about how she doesn't need to do anything like that to be noticed, or to prove herself to anyone. "You're already a star, Rachel" he says truthfully, making her smile in the process.

"It's just an artistic statement, Finn, not a porno" she stifles a teary giggle in her pillow. "It's not anything even remotely sexual, if that's what you're worried about."

The sentence lingers in the air and there's a brief silence at the other end of the line. For a moment she thinks that maybe she has crossed an invisible line; that he's going to hang up on her without another word.

But then she hears him stammer, "I just- I don't want anyone personif…- objectifying you." He quickly corrects the verb before she does it for him. Her heart makes a little jump hearing his response and Rachel's instantly propelled back to her sophomore year of high school, when she dressed up as Britney Spears for a weekly Glee assignment, and Finn reacted in exactly the same way as he's reacting right now. The only difference now is that they're not together anymore, and Finn wouldn't feel this strongly about her doing a scene like that if there weren't still some feelings there, which makes her think that maybe – just maybe – he also hasn't quite moved on from _them_ yet.

"Thanks for your concern, but I think I will be fine. I'll send you a copy when the movie's completed, if you want." she tells him half teasing, half serious. His reaction to her statement is a sharp intake of breath, which turns into a strange cough and a strangled "Uh…yeah…uh…sure…if you want to-" She's inwardly laughing at his obvious shiftlessness, imagining how his face probably looks all cute and flustered right now. "It's nothing you haven't seen before, anyway." She giggles softly, while she hears him stuttering some incoherent answer.

Wait. Is she flirting with him right now? She should probably feel bad about it, but she hates to admit that she's missed this kind of playful banter with him. Kurt would kill her if he knew she was talking to Finn like this right now. She'd been doing so well lately, getting a total makeover, pretending she was over him, but one word from him and suddenly everything she has worked so hard to forget, all comes crashing back in full force.

After Kurt talked her into this new 'New York'- look, she felt so grown up for a while, like a new Rachel, leaving everything and – more importantly - _everyone_ in her past behind; but the past always has its way of catching up on you. Right now, she just feels _so_ lost, it's like she left behind a part of herself somewhere in Ohio, and she has no idea how to get it back.

Anyway, before she has the chance to take things too far, she quickly decides to change the topic and half an hour later, they're in an animated discussion about which is the better ice cream flavor, strawberry or chocolate. Finn argues that strawberry's the "most awesome" flavor "cause berries are sweet and colorful and he loves every kind of berry," after which she briefly wonders if he's trying to flirt with her again or if she just imagined the obvious innuendo. She tells him she prefers chocolate, cause she just loves to contrast him and it reminds her of hot summer nights at his house, when chocolate ice cream was the only thing left to cool off. (She doesn't admit it to him, but she secretly loves strawberry too, because it's a light shade of pink – still her most favorite color - and she can't _not_ like a flavor that has her last name in it, obviously.)

The conversation flows so easily, it seems as if those few months of silence between them never happened.

Telling him about her life makes everything seem more real, as if she's been living in a crazy rollercoaster of a dream before, just now waking up, and seeing things in a more clear perspective.

After a while he whispers, "I'm sorry I'm not there." She instantly knows he isn't just talking about tonight and almost inaudibly she utters "Me too."

There's a long silence after that. It's not awkward or uncomfortable; it's just there, stretching out between them, like a bubble slowly getting larger and larger before it inevitably bursts. Their relationship seems to be stuck in a vacuum of memories and lingering regrets; neither of them seems to be able (or willing) to let go. Eventually she's the one who breaks the silence. "_Finn?"_

_"Yeah?" _he chokes, voice cracking a little at the end.

_"Thank you."_

_"Anytime, baby."_

She hangs up after that.

And then it stops as sudden as it came. She hasn't even noticed any of her surroundings for the past hour and a half, but the loud tapping sound on her window is dwindling; the thunderstorm is moving past New York, leaving only the soft sound of drizzle in it's wake. Drizzle. Finn would've loved this moment, if he were here.

_Why do I even remember this?_

_Because you remember everything about him._

_No, I don't._

_Yes you do. You can't fool anyone, especially not yourself. _

_You remember his smile, and the way the corners of his eyes crinkle when he does so. One special smile is only reserved for you, one side of his mouth turned upwards causing a little dimple in his cheek. You remember how much he loves the smell of pine trees, freshly cut grass and first spring rain. His favorite color is the deep brown of your eyes, which reminds him of dark chocolate and autumn leaves and his favorite holiday is Christmas, because he adores the lights and snow and cheerful atmosphere. You also remember the way his hand curves perfectly around yours, like two puzzle pieces that fit just right. You even remember how his mouth feels on yours, and how his tongue is able to leave a burning trace of fire upon your heated skin- _

_Oh god. _A small whimper leaves her mouth, silently cursing the inner war with herself.

_What about Brody?_

_Brody isn't Finn. _

With that obvious realization she buries her head under her pillow and tries not to scream in sheer frustration. She just can't deny it anymore, not to herself, not to anyone; she's still utterly and irrevocably in love with Finn, she just doesn't have a clue what to do about it. After tossing and turning for another half hour or so, the soft trickling of rain against the window is finally lulling her back to a restless sleep.

5 hours later - which actually feels more like 5 minutes - Barbra's _don't rain on my parade_ is blaring from her cell phone speakers, indicating it's time for her morning routine. Rachel sleepily tries to hit the snooze button but accidentally knocks the device off of her nightstand, simultaneously hitting her lamp, which falls to the ground with a loud bang, and disappears under her bed. The room's still cloaked in darkness, so she inwardly groans and blindly stretches her arm out to search for the lamp. Apparently the thing has rolled its way to a cozy spot under her bed that's 2 millimeters beyond her arm's reach (It doesn't help to be this tiny in these kind of situations), so she has to use her whole upper body to climb under her bed to retrieve the stupid piece of furniture.

"Need any help there?"

Her head shoots up at the sudden sound of a manly voice coming from her door, in the process hitting it against the underside of her bed. With a groan her hand flies to her head, where she can already feel a slight bump forming right above her right eye. Hair all over the place, she looks at her door to locate the source of the voice, immediately recognizing the outlines of Brody's body against the soft morning twilight that's coming from the living room. He's looking at her expectantly making her raise her eyebrows in confusion before speaking.

"Brody? What the hell are you doing in my room at this hour? How did you even get in here? I didn't hear you knocking and Kurt isn't awake yet, so he couldn't have opened the door." She's rambling a mile a minute, confusion still etched on her face.

Unfortunately, he seems to ignore her question and proceeds to enter her room till he's hovering right above her, and she can feel his warm breath on her face. She has no idea why he's here or what he's doing, but his sudden proximity makes her slightly uncomfortable. Being this close to him, she takes in his appearance and only now notices he's wearing a really weird outfit – at least weird for him. He's wearing baggy blue jeans, paired with an undershirt and a plaid shirt over it. In other words: a very small town look. And for some unknown reason, he looks…taller than usual, but she guesses that's just her imagination (and the poor lighting in the room) playing tricks on her. This is definitely not the New York Brody she knows; he would never wear anything like this. It's actually more of an outfit she would expect from...you know.

"Why are you wearing-"

"I'm here to help you prepare for you topless scene, remember?" he quickly cuts her of, looking at her like a child that's eager to open his presents on Christmas day.

She definitely _does not_ remember anything of the sort. Rachel Berry never forgets important meetings, rehearsals or assignments. It's not for nothing she keeps a strictly organized diary in her purse at all times, provided with intricate color schemes and post-it's to meticulously plan everything out. These organizing skills will come in handy when she's famous and she'll have to plan her inevitable interviews, photo shoots and autograph-signing sessions in between her splendid future performances on the Broadway stage. If anything, she's a girl prepared, and unfortunately she was not prepared for this.

"And how exactly were you planning on helping me prepare for it?" she inquires, slowly pronouncing every word, her curiosity getting the best of her.

He laughs at her, showing a perfect row of white teeth, that look absurdly large all of a sudden – how did she never notice how big his teeth were before? - " We talked about this already Rachel" He's looking at her as if she's being silly for not remembering any of this. "We're just going to hang out in the apartment topless, to get you used to the idea of being naked in front of other people." He's still smiling down at her now shocked face, as if what he just told her wasn't totally inappropriate.

The absurdity of the situation doesn't really register in Rachel's brain yet, so she just pushes at his shoulder a little to allow her to get out of bed, and slowly starts walking to the kitchen, feeling his gaze burning her backside. Morning routine totally forgotten, she starts preparing breakfast on autopilot, wondering how she could've forgotten a crucial conversation like that. As she's pulling a loaf of bread out of the cupboard, she hears Brody following her into the kitchen. Just as she's about to turn around and tell him there's no way she's doing what he's suggesting, she suddenly hears his voice right next to her ear.

"Wow, Rach, don't you think you're taking the preparation for this role a little too seriously?"

She's thoroughly confused now. Didn't he just tell her she should walk around the house topless? She hasn't even said or done anything and he's already changing his tune, insinuating this ridiculous idea came from her or something. And why is he giving her a nickname all of a sudden? It sounds wrong out of his mouth and she would have given him an elaborate speech about basic etiquette, if she weren't momentarily distracted by the way Brody's voice suddenly sounds deeper than usual. It still sounds familiar to her, but she can't quite place the difference in tone. She doesn't dwell on it though, because she's still a little annoyed that he just unexpectedly barged in on her like this.

When she turns around to give him a piece of her mind, a loud gasp escapes her lips when she sees it's not Brody who's standing behind her, but no other than Finn Hudson. Is she hallucinating or something? Maybe she hit her head on the bed a little harder than she originally thought… She closes her eyes for a moment, shaking her head in confusion and opening them again a couple of seconds later, but he's still standing in front of her nose. How did he even get in her apartment and where did Brody go? And how did he get here so fast? He was just calling her from Ohio 5 hours ago…

To make the situation even weirder, he doesn't say anything, he's just staring at her, lips parted a little and eyes shifting over her body, making her uncomfortably shift her feet from one side to the other.

Before she can even properly register what's happening, she feels a cold chill running down her spine. Why is it so cold in here all of a sudden? Did Kurt forget to close a window last night? She reaches for the strings of her robe with the intention to pull them tighter around her body, just to notice there isn't anything to pull, hands only grasping for air. Confused she looks down at her body and gasps in shock when she realizes she's not wearing her robe, as a matter of fact, she isn't wearing _anything_. Oh my god. This isn't really happening, is it? She's standing in her kitchen, naked, at half past 6 in the morning with Finn Hudson staring at her like a lost puppy.

She wants to scream, to run and hide in her room (or anywhere else he can't see her for that matter) but her feet seem to be permanently glued to the ground, unable to move an inch. A rosy blush is spreading over her face and body like wildfire and she thinks she's gonna faint if he doesn't stop staring at her like that.

"Where's Brody?" Weirdly enough it's the only question she can think of in this highly bizarre situation.

He smiles a little, eyes locking with hers "does it matter?"

Right now, he's so close to her she can count the freckles on his face, while she's still locked to the ground, unable to move away. "No" she replies faintly, hardly recognizing her own voice.

The air grows thick around them and she feels as if every time she tries to swallow, a chunk gets stuck in her throat, making her breath shallow. All coherent thoughts leave her mind when she feels his hands moving to her waist, pulling her closer, just so her body is lightly grazing his. Her hands move to grip his upper arms to try and steady herself, when she does so, noticing that the plaid shirt and jeans he's wearing look vaguely familiar, but at the moment she can't for the life of her remember where she's seen it before, cause his hands have moved higher and are now dangerously close to her breasts.

"Is this real?" she hears herself stuttering, as if she isn't even in control of her own voice anymore. It's like she's looking down at herself from a distance, watching the strange scene unfold. He looks at her in amusement for a second and slowly moves his head down till his mouth is right next to her ear. His touch is featherlight on her skin and she thinks if he doesn't do or say anything soon, she's going to explode.

"Do you want it to be?" he whispers, one hand now rubbing small circles on her back, the other skimming over her right ribcage. His forehead is pressing against the side of her face, urging her to answer. Teary-eyed, she slowly turns her head around to look at him, giving him an almost imperceptible nod as she locks her hands behind his neck. He's smiling back at her with a beam on his face, his fingers reaching for a stray lock of hair that has fallen in front of her eyes and putting it behind her ear. The early morning light coming from the window is shining bright on his face, turning the color of his eyes a beautiful shade of light brown, she can make out the patterns of freckles like familiar star constellations and his pale skin seems like it's glowing. She can see tiny pieces of dust floating in the first rays of sunlight casting horizontal lines on them through the blinds. The soft warmth of sunlight on her body suddenly makes her feel very exposed again, but she soon forgets about it when he slowly leans down.

Instead of declaring his undying love for her he starts humming, breath hot against the side of her face. '_Don't tell me not to live, just sit and putter'_ he sings softly, lips moving an inch to slowly kiss the apple of her cheek, after which he proceeds to the next line '_life's candy and the sun's a ball of butter'_. If she weren't so occupied with the way Finn's mouth and hands make her body feel like it's slowly burning from the inside, she maybe would've questioned why on earth he's in her apartment, singing a Barbra song to her. Right now she doesn't really care though, and every logical thought she still had left fly out of her head as he briefly swipes his tongue across her bottom lip, and softly kisses her.

She feels his hands swooping her up and easily putting her on the counter, making them the same height, his mouth never leaving hers while he does so. Locking her legs around his waist, she gladly reciprocates the kiss and tries to unbutton his shirt in the process. It's only fair she doesn't remain the only one that's naked here. This proves to be a little more difficult than she thought because he's lightly rubbing the inside of her thighs, making it hard to focus on anything else. She gasps at the sensations he's causing; she hasn't done anything like this in so long, all her senses are heightened and every touch makes her feel twice as much as she used to. Finally getting the shirt off of him, she throws it haphazardly on the floor and proceeds to plant kisses all over his chest. Finn locks their hands together and starts singing again, his voice becoming louder and louder till he's practically belting it out, '_Get ready for me love, 'cause I'm a comer, I simply gotta march, my heart's a drummer, don't bring around a cloud to rain on my parade!'_

She appreciates that he's serenading her with her favorite go-to song but the particular piece isn't really in his range and right now she just needs him to shut up and kiss her senseless, and so she tells him so.

"Don't you like the song?" he asks disappointed, taking a step backwards, instantly making her miss the contact. He sounds like she just murdered his favorite pet or something.

"No, Finn, that's not it-" she starts, but when she looks up to pull him back against her flushed body she nearly has a heart attack and lets out a high-pitched scream. It's not Finn who's standing in front of her anymore, it's the one and only Barbra Streisand, and she's looking at Rachel as if she has two heads. She quickly tries to cover her body with a kitchen towel lying in her reach and stares in shock at the legend that's currently standing in her New York kitchen. Of all the ways Rachel imagined she would be meeting the great Barbra Streisand, this definitely wasn't one of them. In the meantime, she fails to notice Barbra looks about 50 years too young, her dress and hairstyle, with a braid on top of her head, precisely the same as she appears on the signed _Funny Girl _poster_, _hanging on the wall in her room_._

"Why are you calling me Finn?" Barbra asks, looking a little insulted, 'I'm trying to sing a song here, I would appreciate it if you don't interrupt me again" After which she proceeds to finish the song in the impeccable way only the real Barbra can pull off.

After she finishes, Rachel is still gaping at her in the exact same place on the counter, one hand in her lap to cover as much skin as she can, the other holding the striped towel in front of her chest. Barbra doesn't seem fazed by her nakedness though and tries to bring her back to the land of the living by calling her name.

"Rachel? Rachel!" She can see Barbra's mouth moving but the sound that's coming out isn't matching her looks. The singer's voice sounds a little too manly and pitchy.

Rachel groans when suddenly the outlines of her kitchen along with the young Barbra Streisand become blurry and she has to close her eyes for a moment to avoid getting nauseous. When she opens them again, she's blinks a couple of times before she realizes she's lying in her room again, legs tangled in a cluster of sheets and Kurt's face hovering above her, swaying her blaring phone in front her face.

"Finally," he breaths, "you were sleeping so deep, you didn't even hear your alarm going of. I've been trying to wake you for about ten minutes. It seems like you were having quite the dream there." A teasing smirk appears on his face.

Rachel starts to blush, still a little groggy from being woken up so suddenly. Did she just have an erotic dream about Finn that suddenly turned into a nightmare about Barbra Streisand singing to her while she was naked? She's kind of relieved it was a dream, but at the same time she feels a little disappointed and unsatisfied, in more ways than one.

Kurt is sitting on the edge of her bed, watching her with interest "So let me guess, you were dreaming about Brody and his hot body?" his eyes looking for any sign of confirmation on her part.

"Oh my god, Kurt, that's none of your business!" she squeals embarrassed, face undoubtedly looking like a big overripe tomato. She definitely isn't going to tell him whom she was really dreaming about.

"Alright, alright, you don't have to get all squeaky about it, you were making some very weird noises though", he laughs knowingly, "it's only normal you get a little frustrated when you haven't done _it_ since- " he stops talking when he sees her face fall. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that," He immediately apologizes, "but you should do _something_, Rachel. If you don't, you'll never be able to move on."

"I know." She answers, taking his hand, giving him a watery smile.

Kurt's right. Just sitting here in her room thinking about him isn't going to get her anywhere. She needs to take some action; Kurt just doesn't know that what _she's _thinking about isn't going to involve Brody.

He quickly returns her smile and considers the topic closed. "So, did you sleep well last night?" he continues, "According to the news, apparently a major thunderstorm made it's way over New York. I slept right through it though."

"Yeah" She replies, a little smile tugging at her lips, as she thinks of the phone call, "Never better."

She breaks up with Brody the next day.


	2. Summer

**Here's chapter 2! It turned out a lot longer than I anticipated though. **

**This story has now also become completely A/U, because the wedding takes place in summer, not on Valentine's Day like it will on the show. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or any of its characters.**

* * *

** Summer – June 18**

They'd received the invitation 2 months ago. The soft pink envelope had immediately caught her eye, between the usual bills and advertisements haphazardly thrown on the kitchen table in their New York loft. After reading both their names, meticulously written down at the back of the envelope in curly golden letters, she'd ripped it open with an excited squeal and pulled out the classic but beautiful wedding invitation. _'You are cordially invited to the wedding of William Schuester and Emma Pillsbury'_ she had read out loud, so Kurt could also hear the news. 'No way,' he had answered from his usual spot on the couch. 'Way.' She smiled one of her famous smiles, in her head already going over a list of love songs that would perfectly portray the couples' relationship, while at the same time bring out the best in her voice.

Kurt and her eventually decided to go as each other's dates, because they didn't want to make things awkward at the wedding. Not that she had anyone else to go with, anyway, cause after she broke up with him without a real explanation, Brody and her weren't exactly on friendly terms anymore. And besides, there's _really_ only one person she's interested in, so why even bother to look for another option. But still, Kurt could have gone with that new cute boy he met at NYADA, but instead he agreed this would be the best way to go. Blaine and him had some weird kind of friendship going on for the past few months and he didn't want to screw that up.

So, that's how she finds herself standing before a charming little church in Ohio, arm hooked in the crook of Kurt's elbow. They couldn't have picked out a more beautiful day to get married. The sun in shining bright above them, humid air pressing on them as a hot blanket, and little droplets of sweat are already forming on her forehead. She's not quite sure it's because of the heat or because of her nerves, but she quickly wipes them off with the back of her hand.

After a process of careful elimination and a lot of 'very necessary' veto's from Kurt, she'd finally decided on a strapless light purple dress, which looked simple and cute, but actually came out of Isabelle's designer closet at Vogue. Her new and more daring New-York-dresses, Kurt had gotten for her in the last couple of months weren't really suited for a conservative Ohio Wedding, so she had to be a little more creative. Initially she just wanted to go in an old polka-dotted dress, Finn had once told her she looked cute in, but when she put it on to ask for Kurt's opinion, he'd almost scratched her eyes out while yelling some profanities she doesn't particularly want to repeat right now. "Desperate times, call for desperate measures" he'd whispered with a sigh, after which he had called an emergency meeting with Isabelle.

Anyway, she's happy with the result, and she secretly hopes Finn will like it too. The top is hugging her chest perfectly, while the rest of the silky fabric flows down till right above her knees. Her outfit is completed by a black bow around the waist and a pair of 6-inch heels, that are already slowly but surely killing her feet from the inside (if she gets the chance of being alone with Finn, she wants easy access to his face, don't judge). Kurt had braided her hair in a messy but fashionable fishtail, which now hangs loosely alongside her face, and she kept her make-up to the minimal. (She didn't want to risk looking like a drowning raccoon, if -or rather when - she starts crying at the ceremony). Kurt doesn't know of course, she's trying to impress Finn; instead he's thinking she's planning to mingle and seduce some distant cousin of Mr. Schue or something, cause there's no event more suitable for a casual hook-up (which according to Kurt, she needs badly) than a wedding. At least that's what she told him.

She silently berates herself for being so nervous, all of a sudden. This will be the first time since the musical she is going to see him again; they had been texting and calling each other sporadically since that storm three months ago, but they never really mentioned the big elephant in the room. Mister Schuester apparently asked Finn to be his best man, so there's no way she will be able to avoid him today (not that she wants to either). Her mind instantly travels back to the enthusiastic call she got from him a couple of weeks ago.

_"Guess what, Rach." Finn blurts through her phone, without any kind of proper greeting._

_ "Oh, Finn, hi- how have you been?" Rachel's a little caught of guard by the sudden intro of his impromptu phone call, but she can tell by the way his voice sounds a little higher than usual that he's trying very hard to act casual about something he's really excited about. _

_"I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm just calling you because I wanted to tell you something cool." _

_Her curiosity is effectively peaked so she takes the bait, "well, tell me then, what is it?" _

_"Hold on," he says, as she hears him shuffling through his room, followed by something that sounds like just a lot of noise to her. "What was that supposed to be?" she asks him quizzically, after she hears his breathing in the phone again. _

_"That, baby, was a drum role," he laughs at her in mock offense, "wasn't that obvious?"_

_"Well…no" she giggles, the excitement in his voice infectious, "but now that your announcement is properly introduced, I guess you can tell me now."_

_"I guess I can." Finn answers, obviously thrilled to tell her, whatever he has to say. " You know how Mr. Schue and Ms. Pillsbury are getting married next month, right?"_

_" Eh- yeah." She replies hesitantly, not quite sure if she's ready for any kind of wedding talk with him yet. It's kind of a sore topic for them, you see. "I got the invitation in the mail a couple of weeks ago," she breathes. _

_He doesn't seem to notice the hesitance in her voice though and just continues talking " well, I'd never expected him to ask me of all people, but Mr. Schue wants me to be his best man!"_

_She can practically hear him smiling through her phone, knowing how much this probably means to him. He always had this kind of special connection with their teacher. Finn's father died when he was still a baby, so he never really had anyone to look up to or to show him what it meant to be a man, so when he joined Glee club, Mr. Schue kind of took it upon himself to take over that role. He was always the first person (after herself of course) to encourage him to be a leader and support him to follow his dreams. _

_"That's so great," she tells him "I don't think he could've chosen a better person for the job, Finn" _

_"Thanks Rachel – I'm really excited about it, and I actually really love weddings; everyone is always so happy and looking their best for the occasion, oh! And there's always a lot of great food too (of course that would be one of the reasons why Finn loves weddings) And when my mom and Burt got married there was this liquor bar – don't you remember? (Of course she remembers) – and at one point, Puck and I got so – " _

_His voice falters for a moment, when he suddenly realizes the topic they're discussing and the fact that Rachel has been keeping uncharacteristically quiet on the other side of the line. _

_ "Except for all the dancing," he eventually stutters, "I don't like the dancing. Actually, when I think about it- weddings aren't_ that_ great – I mean – in a way they are, but- you know- I- "_

_ She can't help but feel this conversation is getting a little awkward and she knows Finn feels it too, because there's an imminent threat of an extreme case of word vomit coming from his mouth if she doesn't put a stop to it in the next 5 seconds. _

_ "It's okay for you to like weddings Finn," she says after taking a deep breath, effectively cutting him off before his incoherent babbling gets any worse. _

_"Wow- I'm so sorry Rach," he starts, " I really didn't mean to-"_

_"It's fine, Finn, " she quickly cuts in, "really." She doesn't know whom she's trying to convince more, him or herself, but she manages to make it sound casual. "I'm a big girl, I can handle it." _

_"O- Okay, you _are still_ coming to the wedding, right?"_

_"Yeah, of course, silly. I wouldn't miss it for the world."_

She's abruptly pulled out of her thoughts by Kurt, who's roughly pulling at her arm and looking at her with a bored expression on his face. "I hate to pull you out of your daydream, Rachel," he says, "but if we don't go in right now, we're going to miss the wedding, and I didn't put that much effort in your look, just so you can stand outside by yourself staring into space." 

"Alright," she looks at him, giving him a confident nod and takes one last deep breath before turning her eyes back on the high wooden church doors, "Let's go."

She doesn't realize how much she's missed him, until she_ actually_ sees him again. He's standing at the altar (oh my god) talking to Mr. Schue who's already waiting there for Ms. Pillsbury to appear through the big double doors. The black suit and bowtie he's wearing look perfect on his broad frame, and there's a faint stubble covering his face, which makes him look older, and _so, so_ handsome. She might be biased, but she thinks she's never been more attracted to him, than she is right now. It's a good thing they're in a church, otherwise she's not sure if she would be able to control her raging hormones. Apparently, they are one of the last people to arrive, so she quickly follows Kurt to their seats. They have to squeeze themselves through some rows of people before they get where the rest of their old Glee club and some of the new kids are sitting, so she's glad when she can finally squish herself between Tina and Santana, and make herself disappear in the crowd.

"Wow, Berry, you cleaned up nice for a change. I'm really diggin' the stilettos," Santana greets her, eyes slowly moving over her tiny frame, "I had a bet with Puck you would show up in some weird polka-dotted or animal-printed dress, but guess I was wrong." She continues approvingly, "I'm already apologizing in advance for the possibility I might hit on you later this evening, cause good old auntie Snixx is in the mood for some free drinks tonight."

Rachel looks at her in shock, hoping Santana isn't being serious right now.

"Relax, hobbit, and stop acting like you're not flattered by what I just said, " she says, rolling her eyes at the girl's wide-eyed face.

"You're a very attractive girl Santana, but I-"

"I know you're as straight as an arrow, Thumbelina, cause you've been staring at that big log at the altar since you came in here. You can tell everyone, including yourself, that you're over him as much as you want, but you can't fool me, although I will never understand the attraction. Now shut up and let's get this stupid wedding over with." And with that she turns her head to talk to Quinn and effectively ends the conversation.

"Hey, Rachel?" she hears Tina whisper in her ear before she can poke Santana in the arm to try and negate the statement she just made, "you're not mad at me, right?"

At that, Rachel swivels her head around to look at the Asian girl in confusion, "No, of course not," she answers, "why would I be mad at you?"

"Well… because of, you know, me and-." And then she nods at Finn who's still standing at the altar, now scanning the crowd as if he's looking for someone."

A weird sensation is coming over her, making her stomach churn and her cheeks feel as if they're on fire, as she's trying to figure out what Tina's trying to tell her. "What about you and…Finn?" she isn't sure if she actually wants to hear the answer, but asks for it anyway.

"Oh… he didn't tell you?" Tina suddenly looks at her like a deer caught in headlights. "well, - eh, we-" she starts stuttering, as if they've just been transported three years back in time, and having their first Glee rehearsal again.

"Didn't tell me what, Tina?" She's trying to keep her voice down, but it's proving to be very difficult when she's on the verge of a panic attack, and the urge to start hyperventilating is creeping up on her.

"W-well- " Tina starts, knowing full well that she isn't going to escape an explanation, judging by the look on Rachel's almost purple face, "T-These last couple of months, Finn and I have become quite close friends while working on new songs for the Glee club… and, well, at first, when Finn had taken over the club, I was kind of skeptical about his overall abilities, but he really came through for the team and I was really impressed with his leadership and his teaching methods," she continues hesitantly, looking anywhere but at Rachel's face, "it was like watching a new and improved Finn, someone totally different from the one we knew before, and he even looks different, and somehow more…attractive and…manly…" Tina pauses for a moment to check if Rachel's still listening, and not looking for blunt objects in her near proximity to murder her with.

"So…" she hesitantly starts again when she has established she's safe, "we became a lot closer and we kind of bonded about our similar relationship situations, you know?"

Oh my God, Rachel thinks she's going to start screaming if Tina doesn't stop talking soon. Their situations aren't similar at all. Tina didn't almost marry Mike, they didn't break up because he sacrificed their relationship for her dreams, they didn't have three years of rocky history between them, and they certainly weren't each other's _soulmates_.

"So-he-asked-me-to-be-his-date-at-the-wedding-and-now-we're-here-together."

The last part comes out all fast and jumbled and Rachel needs to process for a moment what the girl just said, to make sure she heard it correctly. They're here together? Finn and Tina. Tina and Finn. As in an item? Tinn or Fina? That just sounds ridiculous. This can't be happening, can it? Tina looks like she wants to disappear or just become an inanimate object, while Rachel has to hold on to the chair standing before her to prevent herself from fainting. She actually thinks she's going to throw up, but she manages to suck it up and decides at that moment not to make a fool out of herself and act her way through it.

Looking back up, she gives Tina a little, but unconvincing smile. "Oh- it must have slipped his mind to tell me," she blurts, trying to sound casual, fake smile frozen on her face.

"O-Okay, so you…don't mind?" Tina inquires suspiciously, shifting uncomfortably in her chair.

Rachel takes a deep breath before she retorts in her best acting voice "No, it's fine, Finn and I aren't together anymore, haven't been for a long time, so I don't see any problem with it."

Tina looks relieved to say the least, smiling a genuine smile back at Rachel, who actually feels bad for wanting to punch her in the face for stealing away the love of her life. But this is not really the time and place to cause a scene, so she just turns her head to the altar again, feigning indifference, while on the inside, she's actually screaming.

She really doesn't have the right to be mad at them, because _she_ broke up with him. _She_'s the one who ended it, so it's not like she has any say anymore in what he does or doesn't do. It just hurts to think about him being completely done with _them_ and moving on, just when she's come to the conclusion he's the only one she wants and they've established some kind of tentative friendship again. Their timing just never seems to be right.

It was stupid of her to have expected he would come alone. Apparently, she interpreted all his signals wrong, and she's the only one hoping for a reconciliation. Was she really that dense to think he wouldn't bring a date to the wedding? That he would just happily jump back in her arms the moment he saw her again? Well, to be honest, she did hope for some kind of RomCom-like scenario, preferably with an epic kiss to seal their happy reunion, but unfortunately she was sorely mistaken. Of course, he would bring a date. Finn was a cute, nice and handsome guy; it baffles her that this didn't happen any sooner to be honest. She just really didn't expect it to be with someone she knows, one of their best friends.

The realization that maybe she did actually lose _her person_ hits her like a ton of bricks. She may have actually lost him to Tina, the girl she singlehandedly (and ironically) crowned 'the new Rachel' last year, and she can't even hate her for it, because she brought this all onto herself. A heavy lump is forming in her throat, causing a sharp pain when she tries to swallow, and her eyes start to water. She just has to make it through the ceremony and then she can wallow in her self pity for the rest of the night about the fact that she's never going to find anyone else who's going to live up to her ridiculously high and detailed expectations (he has to be tall, with hazel eyes, cute freckles and dimples in his cheeks, and preferably go by the name Finn).

At that moment, Brad, their old piano player, starts playing the organ, after which the doors of the church open, and Ms. Pillsbury appears in a beautiful classic white dress, arms linked with who Rachel assumes is her dad.

The ceremony is perfect. Rachel has to try her hardest to keep it together when they are reading their vows, but somehow she manages to keep the tears at bay. Her eyes are actually focused on Finn and his cute mannerisms, and the fact that he looks ridiculously happy that he's standing there right now, so she doesn't even notice when the thing's finally over and everyone around her gets up from their seats to see the happy couple leave the church to head to the reception.

She quickly stands too and starts frantically searching for the nearest exit. "I'm sorry, can I get out please?" she nudges Santana in the shoulder, making her grunt. 'What's the rush, Berry." Her voice changes when she sees the expression on Rachel's face though. "Are you okay? You look like someone just told you Barbra Streisand died."

"I'm fine" she chokes, "I just really need to go to the bathroom."

"Okay…" Santana looks at her suspiciously, but moves to let her pass anyway.

As soon as she's outside, she's hit with the hot summer air burning her exposed skin and, despite her light clothing, making her body feel like it's on fire. The sudden heat is causing her head to spin a little so she has to steady herself against the wall for a moment to avoid falling to the ground. Relieved that she's finally made her way out of that suffocating church and so far has managed to avoid a total breakdown, she takes some deep breaths before pulling her act together again.

Meanwhile, the church is rapidly emptying and all the guests are now gathering outside, talking and gossiping about everything and nothing. Not in the mood to talk to anyone right now, she starts scanning for the nearest place where she can lock herself up and can have a good liberating cry about her loss, before heading to the reception with the rest of the guests. After a while, she spots a little bathroom sign with an arrow pointing to a tiny side building next to the church, and automatically her feet begin to move away from the crowd, towards the seemingly perfect hiding place. Unfortunately for Rachel, at that exact same moment, a swarm of bees has the same idea, crossing her path in full flight, and causing 3 of them to hit her face and 2 of them to get stuck in her nicely braided hair.

If this day could get any worse, now would be a nice time to give her a heads up. And she hasn't even talked to Finn yet. Maybe this is how she's getting punished for everything bad she's ever done in her life, like stealing Kurt's solo in sophomore year that one time, or sending Sunshine to that crack house, or, most importantly, breaking Finn's heart.

Not being a big fan of large flying insects, Rachel lets out a high pitched squeal and starts frantically waving her arms, while running in the opposite direction of the buzzing swarm. She's not at all paying attention to where she's running to, and then without any warning, she suddenly collides – painfully hard if she may add – with a broad and very familiar body.

"Woah, easy there," she hears him laughing very close to her face, while steadying her with his hands, warm on her bare shoulders.

When she looks up at him, she almost starts crying right then and there. What is it with this day, that's making her fall from one awful situation into another, that's even worse. "I-there was a- the bees- they- attack- and I- " she's not getting out any proper sentences whatsoever, so she just gives up and starts wildly gesturing to her hair and face.

"Hold still," he interrupts her, taking one of her hands to still her frantic movements, while his other hand is slowly moving towards her face. "What're you do-," she starts, panic lacing her voice, and heart hammering in her chest at an unhealthy rapid pace. But before she can even finish her sentence, he flicks two of his fingers against her hair in one swift motion, causing an angry bee to fall to the ground. "There, you're safe now."

"T-Thanks," she mumbles, face beet-red, and hair all messy because of the running. He's trying to stay serious, but she can tell by the little twinkle in his eyes and the way the side of his mouth is twitching that he's trying very hard not to laugh at her. His hand is still holding hers and she really doesn't want him to let go, but for her own sake (and sanity) she reluctantly wriggles it loose again, under the false pretense of getting something from her purse.

He's just about to say something to her, when a pale head with fluffy curly hair and a pair of thick glasses suddenly pops up next to them, holding a hand camera in their face.

"Graduates, Rachel Berry, future Broadway star, and Finn Hudson,… whatever you aspire to be, would you two like to say something to the happy couple?" Jacob, Mckinley's most annoying blogger, is looking at them expectantly, his eyes unsubtly zooming in on Rachel's modest cleavage.

"Yeah, of course" she answers quickly, swallowing her annoyance for interrupting their conversation.

Finn looks as if he's going to murder Jacob and impulsively puts his arm over Rachel's shoulder and pulls her flush against him, turning her a little so her chest isn't in Jacobs direct vision anymore. He smiles triumphantly at the Jewish boy when the latter reluctantly moves his eyes back to the camera screen, but then turns back to look at Rachel a little panicky, because she's supposed to be the one that's good with words.

Despite her feeling all hot and bothered pressed up against his side, she manages to give him a little reassuring smile and then focuses her eyes back on the little camera that's still directed at them.

"Hi Mr. Schue! Hi Ms. Pillsbury!" She awkwardly waves at the camera, and nudges Finn to do the same.

"Well eh- we haven't prepared anything, but eh- I think I speak for the both of us," she says, quickly gesturing at Finn, who's just stupidly smiling and nodding at her, while keeping her waist in a vice grip, "when I tell you we wish you two the most amazing journey together, the wedding was perfect and beautiful and this is only the beginning of your wonderful life together."

"I-I know what it's like to be in love," she continues, feeling her breath catch in her throat, "and- and to find that one person that completes you in every way-" Finn squeezes her hip at that, his eyes trained on her face, "and also how hard it can be sometimes", she finishes, just barely managing not to cry, "but after all, the only thing that really matters is that you love each other and make each other happy, and I know for a fact that you do."

"And I'd like to add, " Finn cuts in, voice a little shaky, " that you mean so much to us, and that without you I wouldn't have become the man I am today" Rachel smiles at that, leaning into him a little more before he continues, " I met some of my best friends in Glee club, and- and also the love of my-"

"Rachel, there you are!" he's abruptly caught off by someone yelling at them. When Finn sees Kurt marching towards them he quickly lets go of her, and laughs awkwardly at the camera, silently cursing under his breath, while he rolls his eyes at his approaching stepbrother.

Rachel, not wanting to leave their message unfinished, quickly turns her attention back to the camera before Kurt reaches them. "So eh- we love you, we're so happy for the two of you and we wish you an amazing future filled with lots of love, incredible memories, and of course national championships-"

" - and beautiful redheaded curly haired babies" Finn finishes, which makes her laugh, wiping a stray tear that slipped from her right eye. "Yeah, that too."

"What are you two still doing here? And why are you even talking to each other?" Kurt inquires suspiciously when he finally reaches them, hands firmly planted on his hips.

"Kurt!" Jacob interrupts, "do you have anything to say to the happy couple?"

Kurt stares at Jacob as if he's only now noticing him standing there, and gives his appearance a disapproving look. When he notices the camera though, he smiles and runs a hand over his perfectly styled hair, "Oh- hi, Mr. Schue, Ms. Pillsbury, congratulations on the wedding, it was beautiful, although I could've given you some useful fashion tips, that would have certainly made it that much more perfect and flamboyant. But let's not talk details. I hope you two are very happy together and may the sweatervests be forever banned out of your lives!"

"Come on, Rachel," he then says, focusing his attention on the pair next to him again, as Jacob scurries off to stalk some other guests, "our cab has been waiting for 15 minutes already, and Finn, you need to find your own ride because the car is full." Rachel throws him an apologetic look, while following Kurt back to the front of the little church, where their cab is waiting for them. "I'll see you at the reception, Finn" she yells over her shoulder, giving him a last little wave before he disappears from her sight.

The reception takes place in the garden of a cozy little inn mrs. Pillsburry's parents' have rented for the weekend, especially for the wedding. Apparently they are rich or something, because there are 15 rooms available for people who are living too far away or are just too inebriated to do the drive home tonight. The garden surrounding the building is huge and filled with round tables placed under a large white canvas held in its place by pink ribbons that are attached to trees scattered in the area. Every table is decorated with bouquets of beautiful white and pink lilies and silver cutlery, and all the plants are filled with little yellow lights, making the whole thing look like a scene out of a Disney movie. What really catches her eye though is the huge stage that's been set up at a large open space next to a make-shift dance floor with a large cocktail bar at the far end. She has a feeling that bartender might become her best friend for tonight.

"Wow," Kurt's voice sounds behind her, "didn't know teachers got paid this much."

"Yeah…it's beautiful," she agrees, staring at the fairytale like image before her.

They're seated at a table with Mike, Santana, Quinn, Sugar and Artie, While Finn and Tina are sitting 2 tables to their right, with Brittany, Puck, Mercedes, Blaine and Sam. She secretly switches places with Santana, so Finn's in her direct vision, and she can therefore watch his every move. When he catches her looking at him, he gives her a little wave, and that crooked smile he only reserves for her. A light fluttering in her stomach warns her she's about to enter dangerous territory.

The wedding dinner consists of a plethora of different choices, all nicely presented on a long table at the side of the eating area. As a vegetarian, she stays far away from the meat, and quickly moves on to the fish options, where Santana is, rather unsuccessfully, trying to cut a piece of salmon, knife in one hand, plate in the other. "Care to help me here for a sec, " she gestures to the large piece of salmon, when she spots Rachel next to her, carefully taking a spoon of caviar.

"So I heard Gigantor over there came with the Asian today." She points the knife briefly at Finn, who's standing at the meat section with Tina. He's currently stuffing his plate full of different pieces of food, no normal person would ever combine, while Tina is stupidly giggling at something he just said. Rachel takes the knife from Santana, easily cutting the piece of salmon and throwing it on the girl's plate with a frustrated sigh.

"Yeah, so?" she tries to hide the hurt in her voice, "What do you care?"

Santana just shrugs, "Well, I don't to be honest." And for a millisecond, she throws Rachel a pitying look, as if she wants to tell her she's sorry, but then her expression changes back to her usual 'I don't care'- face, "I'm just looking for a partner to get drunk with tonight, and after a logical process of elimination I've come to the conclusion that you're the candidate who's most likely to join me."

"Why are you so bent on getting drunk tonight, anyway?" Rachel asks ignoring Santana's insinuation and raising her eyebrows questioningly, while she absentmindedly picks a grape from the garniture, and pops it into her mouth. The Latina's eyes are focused on something behind her though, so she turns her head, curious to see what she's looking at. Somewhere between the vegetables and the soup, Brittany and Sam are wrapped in an intimate embrace, holding hands and kissing each other, which makes her realize maybe she's not the only one hurting here. Apparently they're in the same boat, and she can't even imagine how she would react if she saw Finn and Tina doing _that_.

"I know how you feel, midget." Santana tells her, a sad knowing smile pulling at her lips, "So if you'd like to join me at the bar tonight, you're welcome." After that she turns around and silently returns to her seat.

Still staring at Santana's retreating figure, she doesn't notice a large figure approaching her until she feels his hand touching her shoulder, "Hey, Rach," Finn's standing behind her, balancing his already overfull plate in one hand and scanning the table before them for anything else he can add to it. "I told you weddings always have great food, didn't I."

She can't help but shake her head at that, smiling at him. "You did."

"Kurt and Blaine asked me if we wanted to join them on stage after dinner to sing a song for Mr. Schue and Ms. Pillsbury. I told them I'd check with you first, if you're okay with it."

"Yeah of course I'm okay with it, why wouldn't I be? I wish everyone would just stop worrying about my reaction to everything. I'm fine." She tries to sound convincing, but failing when she sees Finn's face looking at her skeptically.

"Are you really? I mean, I'd understand if you weren't, you know."

"No, really, Finn, I'm okay, don't worry about me," She doesn't want him to know how miserable she's really feeling, especially now that he's brought Tina as his date and he doesn't seem bothered by anything at all, "I'll see you on the stage okay?"

After an awkward glance, she turns on her heels and starts walking back to her table, until she realizes she hasn't asked him what song they're doing. Quickly she turns around to call his name before he disappears into the crowd "Hey Finn!" she yells after him "What song are we doing?"

He turns with a smile on his face, "We've got tonight, by Bob Seger." And then he's off again.

Well, that can't be too bad, she thinks. It's not something out of her usual repertoire, but it's a classic romantic song and Mr. Schue will surely like it. She's not too familiar with the lyrics though, so she takes it upon herself to look them up on her IPhone during dinner. After learning the whole thing by heart, it's safe to say they couldn't have chosen a worse song for her to duet on with the love of her life. It's too late to back out now though, and Kurt is nowhere to be seen for some reason so she can't ask for his help. She also doesn't want anyone to think she can't handle it, because she's determined to show everyone here how talented she really is. There's always an off chance there are some Broadway related people in the audience, you know.

To distract herself from the nearing performance of doom, she zooms in at Finn and Tina sitting at the other table, to check what they're doing. After watching a conversation between them, and carefully analyzing their body language towards each other, she comes to 2 conclusions, firstly they don't even have half the chemistry Finn and her share, and secondly she's becoming a pathetic stalker.

Tina's made it a habit of touching Finn's arm, every time she says something, and it's driving Rachel nuts. Finn of course is totally oblivious to the fact she's flirting with him, and just laughs at her the whole time, probably making stupid puns he'd normally direct at her. She notices that Mike, who's sitting next to her, is also staring at them with a sad look on his face, which is probably perfectly matching hers. How did they all get so messed up?

After dinner, it's time to cut the wedding cake, which is huge and white and has two cute little figures on top. She'd started drinking champagne about and hour ago, and right around the time she'd seen Finn and Tina disappear together, to God knows where. They're back now though and Finn is throwing glances her way, or maybe it's just her stalker-brain that's imagining it. She's a little tipsy, and she pretends the two little figures on the cake are Finn and her, holding hands, one little puppet slightly bigger than the other. But then coach Sylvester takes it upon herself to put the large knife right between them, making the girl figure fall from the top straight to the ground, getting crushed by Sue's foot, leaving the male standing there all alone. Swallowing hard, Rachel can't help but think the scene acts as a perfect metaphor of her situation and how she's feeling right now.

Depressed at the thought, she raises from her chair to look for an new bottle of champagne she can steal from somewhere, but on her way she gets interrupted by a disheveled looking Kurt. "Oh Rachel! There you are, I can never seem to find you!" he rushes over to her, "Did you find someone to hook up with yet?" he inquires, looking at her conspiratorially, "I've been keeping an eye out for you, and I've already spotted some excellent candidate specimen for you." Oh no, she totally forgot about the fact she told Kurt she was looking for a one-night stand. The only one-night stand she's currently close to having tonight is with herself. "No, but-"

"Don't worry about it!" he proceeds enthusiastically, "I've been subtly spreading the rumor around that you're looking for someone no strings attached, so I'm sure you'll get lucky tonight."

"You did what?" she exclaims, horrified by what Kurt just said. What if Finn heard anything about this?

"It's okay, Diva, I just told a couple of people, you'll be totally fine!" he practically yells at her over the sound of the band doing a sound check on the stage, making her eyes go wide in fear at the thought of who he could have possibly told.

"Now common, it's time for our song," and then he's pulling her arm again, insistently dragging her still shocked frame behind him and before she even knows what's happening she's shoved onto the stage with Kurt, Blaine and Finn, and he's introducing them and the band is already playing the intro after which he starts singing the first verses directly to her.

_I know it's late, I know you're weary _

_I know your plans don't include me. _

Well, _her_ plans most certainly _do_ include him, and she's going to make sure he knows it before the night is over.

_Still here we are, both of us lonely _

_Longing for shelter from all that we see _

_Why should we worry, no one will care girl _

_Look at the stars so far away_

These lyrics are a little too close to her heart and the look in Finn's eyes isn't helping at all. He walks a little closer, till he's standing right in front of her, and she could touch him if she wanted to. She tries to keep herself in check though, because she's quite sure that if she touches him now, she's just gonna maul him.

_We've got tonight, who needs tomorrow? _

_We've got tonight babe _

_Why don' you stay? _

That's a very good question actually. If she has any say in it, she would gladly stay, but she's not sure if that's going to be an option. The next verses are hers, so as usual she tries her best to poor as much emotion in them as she can.

_Deep in my soul, I've been so lonely _

_All of my hopes, fading away _

_I've longed for love, like everyone else does _

_I know I'll keep searching, even after today_

She has no problem delivering these lines convincing, it's like this song is written for them, and she wonders if he's also aware of that fact, while he takes over again.

_So there it is girl, I've said it all now_

And then they're singing together again, and God, it's been too long since they've last done this.

_And here we are babe, what do you say? _

_We've got tonight, who needs tomorrow? _

_We've got tonight babe _

_Why don't you stay?_

Their bodies are so close right now, it's hard to keep focused on the lyrics, instead of the little droplets of sweat running down the side of Finn's face, and how badly she wants to kiss them off and run her fingers through his hair. Luckily for her, the next part is sung by Kurt and Blaine who are looking suspiciously in love as they're staring in each other's eyes. She can't really blame them though, because she's so turned on right now, it makes her want to jump in a tub of ice water, just to temper the heat and excitement that's coursing through her body. Blaine and Kurt continue singing like love sick puppies, until Finn and her take over again to end the song together, with Finn grabbing her hand, exactly as the lyrics say, and pulling her a little closer to his chest, if that's even possible.

_Turn out the light, come take my hand now _

_We've got tonight babe _

_Why don't you stay? _

_We've got tonight babe_

_Why don't we stay?_

Everything and everyone around them is disappearing as they're singing the last 2 verses together, their voices harmonizing and connecting them like never before. If it weren't for Tina interrupting the loaded tension hanging in the hot summer air between them, by dragging Finn off the stage complementing them on their performance, this most probably would have resulted in a repeat of their little incident at nationals 2 years ago. Except this would rather be the Jew eating the T-Rex, as opposed to the other way around.

Oh God, Santana was right. She needs to get drunk, and fast. Otherwise she's fairly certain she isn't going to make it through the night in one piece. Why did she even agree to sing that song with them? The moment Finn took her hand and looked her in the eyes while singing in that husky voice of his, she thought she was going to explode from pent up sexual frustration. She had been just moments away from ripping his clothes of and jumping him right then and there on the stage. What's wrong with her? Those months of being single in New York seem to have turned her into an obsessive, horny teenager again. Singing together had always been their mutual weakness, but this time their chemistry was totally off the charts. At least that's how she felt, till Tina had interrupted the moment. She even forgot she'd prepared one of Barbra's classics to perform tonight, and that says a lot about her current state of mind.

She's been sitting at the bar for a good half an hour now, sipping on her third much needed Manhattan, as she jealously gazes at Tina who's quite unsuccessfully trying to pull Finn on the dance floor, that's located right next to where she's sitting. That's just terrific, she thinks. The two of them dancing together is really the last thing she wants to watch right now, but at the same time she can't tear her eyes away from the scene in front of her. Doesn't the girl know that Finn hates dancing? You'd think that knowing someone for over three years must give you at least _some_ idea of what a person likes and dislikes. The only scenario in which he would even consider dancing is if it's with her, at least, that's how it used to be. So when she sees Finn relenting to Tina's attempts and uncomfortably following her to the dance floor, she has to take a large gulp of her cocktail to numb the pain in her heart.

A gin tonic and 4 sappy songs performed by the new Glee club later, Rachel's seconds away from marching up to them and grabbing Finn out of the devil's spawn's grasp, when Jacob suddenly pops up in front of her again with a creepy smile on his face and a large glass of whisky in his hand.

"Hey Rachel," he slurs, obviously already as inebriated as she's feeling, " A little bird told me you're looking for a warm body to cuddle up to tonight."

Absolutely horrified by his terrible attempt at being smooth, she frantically starts scanning the area for possible escape routes. She's absolutely going to kill Kurt when she gets her hands on him.

"I'm not interested, Jacob, so please take your stupid pick up lines elsewhere" she answers in a disgusted voice, not immediately finding anyone else nearby to talk to.

"Oh common, Rachel, I know your indifference to my Jewish charm is just an act, so you can just tell me the truth, I won't tell anyone." He keeps insisting while attempting to grab her free hand that's lying in her lap, "and maybe later I can find out if your panties match the dress."

The beverage she's holding suddenly doesn't seem strong enough to block out the grossness of his last statement, so she turns around, quickly pulling her hand far out of his reach and gestures at the bartender to bring her another drink.

Rachel has never felt more pathetic in her entire life, than she does right now. She's sitting all alone at a bar at a wedding, getting drunk, with Jacob as her only source of company and it seems as if her life has regressed back to how it was 4 years ago. She's back to being the unlikeable underdog struggling to be noticed with Jacob harassing her and Finn as the unattainable object of her affection. The only difference now is that she's older and the setting's a little different.

"What's up Smurfette, you're getting drunk here all by yourself?" Santana's head appears behind them, totally ignoring Jacob's presence and popping on a barstool between them, back turned to the Jewish boy, and therefore effectively saving Rachel from his unsubtle advances.

"I really don't appreciate you calling me after cartoon figures, Santana" she retorts with a huff, not in the mood for Santana's insults, but at the same time glad she has another person to talk to.

"You think I do it because I think you like it? Now where would be the fun in that, chipmunk?"

Rachel rolls her eyes, but moves over to make some more room for her nonetheless.

"If you want him, then just go up there and get him," she says then, totally out of the blue, nodding at the dancing pair a couple of yards away, "you know as well as me he won't say no. Just be sure you mean it this time, Rachel, cause you really hurt him last time." Rachel looks at her weirdly, eyes glazing over a little as she does so.

"What? I may not act like I care most of the time, but he doesn't deserve what you did to him.

And if you ever tell him I told you that, I know where to find you. I don't want him feeling superior or anything."

"No," she smiles, "that's not it." The words come out a little slurred from all the drinks she's had. "I know you're not nearly as heartless as you want people to think you are for some bizarre reason, and I know you don't really hate Finn or me for that matter, otherwise we wouldn't be sitting here, having this conversation." She's silent for a moment before she continues, "But you just called me Rachel." She smiles then, baring her perfect row of white teeth and cutely biting her bottom lip, as if Santana just gave her the best present she could've ever asked for.

"Oh," she says, suddenly realizing what Rachel is referring to, "Well, don't get used to it."

Rachel's smile soon fades though when she longingly glances back to the dancing pair, until Santana's roughly nudging her arm, "Now go, before they start playing Asian tonsil hockey." Rachel looks at her in sincere shock, grossed out by the mere idea of Finn and Tina engaging in any sort of public display of affection.

She will be damned before anything like that happens and the alcohol in her veins is reinforcing her belief that Santana's right. If she really wants him back, she has to take the initiative, and do something about it. It all sounds so simple but when she wants to get down from the barstool she's currently occupying, she realizes she might be a little more drunk than she previously thought. Once her shoes hit the floor, the whole room starts spinning and she needs to grab Santana's hand to let her vision slowly turn to normal again.

"You okay there, Berry?" She hears Santana ask, the sarcasm in her voice totally lost on her.

"Yes, I'm fine, I'm confident, and I'm going to get what's mine!" she shouts in the Latina's ear as she downs Santana's just ordered shot of tequila as a last boost of confidence, "And by the way, I totally think you should follow your own advice," she unsubtly points to Brittany and Sam, who're also dancing, somewhere near Tina and Finn. After Santana throws her an amused smile and pats her on the back to send her on her way, she proceeds to waggle onto the dance floor, almost breaking her left foot in the process.

She barely hears the catcall along with a loud "you go girl!" the Latina's yelling after her, shaking her head at Rachel's obvious drunkness, but at the same time eager to see what's going to happen.

Tina's eyes become twice as big when she sees Rachel marching straight towards them, her arms outstretched to keep her balance, dangerously wobbling on her ridiculously high Louboutin heels, "Rachel, What are you doing!" she squeals when the tiny girl grabs one of Finn's arms, and pulls him out of Tina's Grip.

"I'm stealing my Finny back" she slurs, holding him against her in a vice grip, both arms now wrapped around his waist, and smiling like a child that just won back their favorite toy.

"Eh- Rach," Finn's uncomfortably staring from one girl to the other " I was actually dancing with Tina for a moment there, do you mind waiting for the next song?"

"No" she just states, gripping him a little tighter and burying her face in his shirt, "I want to dance now."

He lets out a defeated sigh, and throws an apologetic look in Tina's direction, mouthing her a quick 'sorry' before he wraps an arm around Rachel to keep her steady.

"Rach," he says softly, after he watches Tina go sit at a table where Mercedes and Puck seem to be in an animated discussion, "you know you can't just do that, right?"

"Can't do what?" she mumbles.

"Just swoop in, and 'steal' me away from people."

When she doesn't answer him he looks down at her face to see her staring guiltily at the floor, fidgeting with the buttons of his shirt. "How much exactly did you drink?"

She doesn't need to answer for him to know it's way too much for a lightweight like her.

"And on another note, why on earth did you put on such high heels? He looks down at her feet, watching her carefully manoeuver them to the beat of the music (she's so out of synch, it's like she's dancing to a completely different tune in her head. If at this moment she had to compete in a dance competition with Finn as the only opponent, he would still win, and that says a lot)

"It's not that you don't rock them, because you do, " he tentatively continues, "You look really beautiful actually, but right now you kind of resemble a baby flamingo that's learning to walk."

" I love flamingo's," she tells him with a bright smile on her face, looking up at his face adoringly, as if he just complimented her by calling her one, "They're Pink." She finally adds after a silence, like that's totally new information.

"Yeah, I know" he answers, pressing her just a little closer to his chest.

When the song's over she's still clinging onto him like a lifeline, so he has to peel her from his body and sit her down on a chair to make sure she's fine. Rachel feels as if her head's filled with wads of cotton, and a pleasant heat is coursing through her body, making her all sleepy and fuzzy. "I'm gonna get you a glass of water, okay?" she hears him say, as he crouches down on the floor next to her, slowly rubbing circles on her knee. When he stands to go to the bar, she's already forgotten what he just told her, and grabs his hand to keep him in place. "Don't leave me," she whines, two hands now grabbing onto one of his forearms.

"I'll be right back, Rachel, just stay here okay and don't move," he looks at her comically, trying not to laugh at the sad pout she's giving him, before he manages to pull himself out of Rachel's surprisingly strong grip, and quickly runs to the bar before she can grab him again.

Rachel's overcome by a strong feeling of abandonment when she watches Finn's figure getting smaller and smaller, until he disappears in the crowd. Where was he going again? Her brain doesn't seem to work properly anymore at the moment and she can't for the life of her remember what he told her just mere seconds ago. The only thing she remembers is that he said she isn't allowed to move, but she has to go to the bathroom so badly. All those drinks are pushing on her bladder and it's not long before she's pushing herself out of the chair, trying to find her balance by holding onto a table next to her. When she's finally managed to stand straight, she starts zigzagging into the darkness of the garden choosing a random direction, and leaving the sounds of laughter and music behind her.

It's new moon tonight, which makes the numerous star constellations lighting up the sky above her clearly visible and the early summer heat that's still lingering in the air is causing the soft fabric of her dress to cling to her body while she keeps walking till the party behind her looks like one big haze of yellow lights. This garden really is so huge, it actually looks more like a park, she thinks. Suddenly realizing she probably won't find any bathroom here, she quickly crouches down next to a tree and pulls her underwear down to release the painful pressure on her abdomen. Under no normal circumstances would she ever even consider doing such a thing, but since she isn't sober and this is kind of an emergency situation, she makes an exception. If this day has to go down in history as worst day ever in Rachel Berry's life, she won't even remember this little insignificancy.

A few minutes later she's walking in the direction of the party again, her painful shoes shed somewhere along the way, now walking barefoot in the soft grass. She's almost halfway when she suddenly spots a little gazebo hidden behind some bushes. Slowly she makes her way to the wooden construction, clumsily trying to climb the little stairs. When she's finally inside she goes to stand at the railing, grasping it tightly, looking over a little pond, surrounded by all kinds of flowers. The stars in the sky are reflecting in the water like a million little lights illuminating the still surface, making her lean her head against one of the pillars in awe.

When her eyes have adjusted a little to the darkness she's standing in, she notices the unevenness under her fingers, and when she looks down, she sees that every inch of wood inside the gazebo is carved. When she takes a closer look she discovers the carvings are letters, letters spelling out words that are forming all kinds of messages of love, left behind by guest that have stayed in the Inn in the past. As she's trying to read some of them, her heart painfully constriction as she does so, for the first time today she can finally let herself cry. Long and harsh sobs are coming from her chest, letting out all the pent up emotions she's been feeling today. After a while she's all out of tears, and her breathing evens out again, as she wipes her still damp cheeks with the palm of her hand.

She almost has a stroke when she suddenly hears a voice behind her.

"There you are, I've been looking for you everywhere." Finn lets out a relieved sigh, "I told you to stay seated, didn't I? Why are you here in the dark all by yourself and where are your shoes?"

Through the darkness, she can only make out the soft outlines of his face, waiting for her to give him an explanation. In confusion she looks down at her bare feet, and she's never felt so small and insignificant as she does right now.

"You left me" she sniffs then, stumbling backwards a little, so she has to grip onto the wooden railing of the gazebo to steady herself again.

"Are you crying?"

He's slowly approaching her tiny frame, until he's hovering right over her, softly taking her chin in his hand to turn her face towards him.

"No" she shakes her head stubbornly, quickly wiping the last remains of her tears from her cheeks, looking anywhere but at him.

"Hey, look at me," he insists, curving his hand around her jaw to make her look up at his face. They're just staring at each other for what seems like forever, until Finn interrupts the silence by pulling out a little bottle of water out of his jacket, "You should drink this," he tells her, handing it to her.

She silently accepts it, brushing his fingers in the process, still staring at him, until she can't take this awful tension between them anymore. "I-I have to go" she stutters, not being able to be this close to him without wanting to kiss him, and probably making a total fool of herself when she does so.

She tries to make her way past him, giving him a little push against his chest, so he'll let her pass, but in her hurry, the hem of her dress gets stuck on a nail sticking out of the wood on the side of the gazebo. The sudden pull makes her lose her balance, bottle of water flying out of her hand, and she can already feel her body moving towards the hard wooden floor. The darkness makes it hard to estimate the distance to the ground, but before she has the time to close her eyes and stick out her hands in an attempt to soften the blow, she feels two strong arms wrapping around her waist, just in time to save her from a possible second case of a broken nose.

"It's okay, I got you" he breaths against her cheek. The butterflies fluttering in her stomach, caused by Finn's proximity, mixed with the champagne, gin tonic and 3 manhattans (Even in Ohio, she likes to act New York-ish) she'd tossed down one after the other, are making her feel very dizzy to the point she feels as if said butterflies are trying to claw their way out through her throat. It's only then that her brain catches up and she realizes it's not the butterflies, but the alcohol that's decided it doesn't like her stomach very much, and she needs to puke, badly.

"I-I think…" she tries to stammer, face paling more and more with every word.

"You think what?" Finn whispers worriedly, eyes still trained on her face and arms securely around her waist, as if she's some porcelain doll, that will break once he'll let her go.

"I- I – need to…" before she can even finish her sentence her stomach churns and she can feel a burning sensation making its way up through her esophagus in a rapid pace. Just in time, she turns around in his arms with a sudden newfound, albeit brief, force, and pukes her guts out over the railing of the gazebo, right into a bed of freshly planted red tulips. _Well, that's attractive._ She inwardly berates herself. _Way to ruin the moment, Rachel._

She waits for him to be grossed out and let her go but he just keeps holding her heaving form, gently pulling some loose strays of hair backwards so they're out of her face. She's heavily gasping for breath and her eyes start watering just from the exertion. Her left hand is gripping onto the wooden railing, and her right is blindly reaching for his arm that's still tightly holding her. "Are you okay?" Finn worriedly brushes her bangs out of her pale face and pulls her tiny frame slowly against his chest. "I feel awful," she groans in his shirt, tears of misery seeping into the fabric.

"C'mon," he says, "let's sit you down somewhere." He takes her hand and carefully leads her wobbling feet down the steps of the gazebo, picking up the bottle of water along the way, and sitting her down on a patch of grass under a large weeping willow nearby. The irony of the tree's name is not lost on her in the situation. Once she's safely seated on the ground, he crouches down to sit behind her, pulling her between his legs and letting her lean her body against his chest. Automatically she curls into him, hands tightly gripping the lapels of his dress shirt. "I'm never drinking again" she mumbles, voice all muffled against him. "I think it might be best if you kept it to the minimum next time" he chuckles, soothingly rubbing her arm and softly kissing her overheated forehead.

"Now would you tell me why you were crying or do I have to guess?"

She sighs in resignation and decides she might as well just tell him the truth and have it over with.

"Why didn't you ask me to be your date for today?" she manages to choke out in a way that almost breaks Finn's heart. "Was I that stupid to think that we-"

"Hey, Hey," he interrupts her before she can go any further, "you're not stupid at all, Rachel," he hesitates for a moment, "if anyone's stupid, it's me for thinking you wouldn't be interested to be my date."

"Why would you think that?"

He looks at her as if she's being ridiculous, "because I thought you were dating some fancy New York guy, some amazing singer or incredible dancer or-"

"I'm not," she quickly assures him.

"You're not?" he repeats, as if he wants to check he heard her right.

"No." she says it so quietly, it's almost inaudible. "So…are you and Tina…?" She can't even make herself finish that sentence.

"What?" he looks at her in bewilderment, "No- Rachel, God, no of course not." He squeezes her a little closer and looks at her face for a moment to make sure she's clearly hearing what he's saying, "we're just friends."

A surge of relief courses through her body when she hears him say that. She doesn't want to push him, but she can't help it, she just needs to know, "then why are you here together?"

"Well," he sighs, "I needed a date, firstly because I didn't want to look like a fool in front of you, and Tina was just the obvious safe choice. And secondly, because Blaine asked me to ask her as a favor, because she apparently developed little crush on him and he didn't want her to get the wrong idea."

"That's just stupid" Rachel mumbles quietly against his chest, her head securely tucked under his chin.

"You're the one to talk" he chuckles, "you went on a date with him after that crazy party at your house 2 years ago."

"Hey, that was different," she tries to defend herself, a little offended by his accusation, "he was still doubting his sexual orientation back then."

"Yeah well, since Tina and Mike broke up she's been a little lost and I just wanted to be a good friend to her, you know. I know what it feels like to get your heart broken, and I think you do too," he glances down for a moment to see her fidgeting with a piece of grass on the ground, "and maybe she took this going-as-each-others-dates thing a little too seriously, but I don't think she's really interested in me. She's just trying to forget about mike by focusing her attention on other people, but I can tell she's still in love with him."

"I understand why she's doing that, too" Rachel admits a little embarrassed, thinking of Brody and how she immediately jumped into a relationship with him, to hide her real feelings and pretend she was over Finn.

"And I think maybe Mike also still has feelings for her," she continues, "'cause I saw him eying you like he wanted to punch you in the face when you were dancing with Tina."

He chuckles a little at that, "Oh so that's why you swooped in, and came to my rescue."

"You're welcome." She says in all seriousness.

"Anyway," he starts again, "a long story short, we're just here together as friends, like you and Kurt, and we always will be just friends. I mean, Tinn or Fina? That just sounds ridiculous," he jokes, making her laugh at their exact same thoughts.

"Now will you drink this please," he says, handing her the water bottle she so gracefully dropped when she almost fell on her face, 'cause I've been carrying it around for you for like a full hour now."

Taking it from him with a quiet "thank you" she gulps half of it down at once. The cold water is soothing her soar throat and considerably clearing her foggy brain, which makes her suddenly become very aware of the fact that she's sitting between Finn's legs under a tree, alone in the dark, and if it weren't for her little puking session at the gazebo, she would've already kissed him around the time he told her Fina would never happen. Why couldn't she just have held it in a little longer? _Probably because this day officially and royally sucks. _

She can feel Finn's hand slipping around her from behind and stilling on top of her stomach. "Do you feel better?" he asks, rubbing his thumb over the silky fabric of her dress. The side of his chin moves against her cheek, and if she'd move her head only an inch right now their lips would meet, which makes her swallow hard in frustration. If he doesn't stop touching her like this, she's just going to jump him right here, puke or no puke. He's asking for it.

"Your face tickles," she says instead, "you never had that before."

"Do you hate it?"

"No, " she puts her hand over his on her stomach, "I like it."

"You see that bright star right there," he murmurs then, pointing to the sky and thereby putting an end to her horny thoughts. "That's the Polestar," he tells her, gesturing to the biggest and shiniest star she can make out through the long branches and leaves, swaying around them in the light summer breeze. "And that little star on its right, that's your Finn-star," he smiles cutely, moving his hand a little to indicate where she should look. "So now I'm sure you know exactly where it is, in case I'm not there."

Rachel of course already knew that, because the exact location of her star was written on the paper he gave her last Christmas, and she had looked for it a hundred times already while feeling lonely. She doesn't tell him that she can hardly see stars in New York and most of the time there's too much light to make out anything other than the moon. In this moment, looking up at the sky filled with a million stars, she understands Finn's love for the country in a way. At heart he'll always be a small town boy, but she knows he's meant for something greater than that, he just has to figure out what that is first.

"I don't just give away Finn Hudson-stars to any girl, you know." he whispers in her ear, tickling her sides when she doesn't answer immediately.

"No, Finn! Don't-" She squeals and starts squirming in his arms, in the process almost ripping off half of Finn's shirt, leaving his chest half naked. "Don't what?" he teases, continuing to torture her, till she's out of breath, and yelling at him to cut it out, or else. When he finally stops, they're both heavily breathing, their faces considerably closer than they were before. She's still holding onto part of his shirt, that's now hanging somewhere halfway his elbow, and he's still holding the small of her back, smirking at her totally disheveled appearance.

"So…" she starts after a long silence, tension palpable in the air between them.

"So…" he echoes, eyes moving to her lips.

Just when she thinks he's going to kiss her (If he doesn't mind the puke breath, she doesn't mind either), the sound of nearing footsteps breaks their moment. She's going to murder the person that's interrupting them once again. Rachel just wants to suggest quickly moving somewhere else, when she sees the clear outlines of Jacob's hair approaching them through the darkness.

"What the hell is Jewfro doing here?" Finn wonders out loud.

"Oh no, you need to hide me, Finn. Quickly, hide me!" she's pushing at his chest as if he's able to magically make her disappear.

"Where do you expect me to hide you?" he laughs "In my pocket? I know you're small but-"

"I don't care, this is not funny, Finn, just do something so he won't see me" she squeaks at him trying to keep her voice down, "Kurt told everyone I am looking for a hook-up tonight, and now Jacob is stalking me."

"Kurt did what?"

"It's a long story," she mumbles in a hushed voice, "but if you don't do something right now, we're never gonna get rid of him" Finn's face falls at that statement, so she knows she's gotten through to him.

"Act like you're sleeping" he whispers then, so she quickly drops her head back on his chest, closing her eyes and gripping his shirt a little tighter.

At that exact moment, Jacob reaches the tree where they're sitting, and halts when he spots them. "Oh. Hi Finn, I see you found Rachel" he looks at them suspiciously, obviously still as drunk as he was before, "I thought you guys broke up?" he slurs.

"W-We did," Finn stutters, "but eh- Rachel didn't feel so well so I was helping her, and eh, then she fell asleep"

Jacob doesn't seem to believe him and keeps staring at Rachel in his arms, till Finn gets uncomfortable, "Why is your shirt open then?" he says eventually.

"Eh- I was hot?" he quickly makes up, "so eh- I don't think she will be going anywhere with you tonight, as much as she kept telling me she wanted to." Rachel can tell he's trying to stifle his laugh, while saying the last part. She almost breaks her role to negate his ridiculous statement but her name wouldn't be Rachel Berry if she couldn't deliver a flawless performance. Instead she slyly pinches the skin on his back, to let him know she didn't think it was funny.

"Really? I knew it, I knew she was just playing hard to get!" she hears Jacob cry out triumphantly.

The disappointment in his glazy eyes about her being asleep is clearly visible, but he suddenly perks up again, clearly having formed some kind of misguided idea in his head.

"Well she can sleep in my bed if she wants; I reserved one of the 15 available rooms as soon as I heard there was going to be a cocktail bar." He suggests, like he's never had a better idea. Rachel silently groans at the thought of sleeping in a room with Jacob's stuff all over. "It's a double, but since I came here single and ready to mingle, there's plenty of room for Rachel. She won't even notice I'm there." he continues, eying Rachel like a pray he's ready to jump at any time. Oh my God, is he really saying what she thinks he's saying? She wouldn't sleep in the same bed with Jacob even if Barbra herself asked her to. She can feel Finn's arms protectively closing a little tighter around her body, which makes her smile against his chest.

"Eh I don't think that will be necessary, Jewf- eh Jacob," Finn tries to stall, "we really don't want to bother you by occupying your private room."

" What are you talking about, don't be silly!" he retorts, wobbling a little on his feet, "it's really no problem, and besides it'll only be Rachel, right, I'll gladly make room for her in my bed."

"Eh-Okay… " she hears Finn suddenly agree to her disappointment, "Just give me the keys, and I'll carry her to your room, and then I'll come back to find you to return them." What in heaven's name is he doing? This was not what she had in mind at all.

He's already lifting her off the ground before she can let him know that in no circumstances she is going to sleep in that room, and she can't believe Finn would do that to her.

"It's room 13," she hears Jacob's eager voice, suddenly right next to her. Figures it would be an unlucky number. "I'll be waiting for you right here, okay?" Jacob yells after Finn's retreating form after they've exchanged the keys.

"Got it," Finn shouts back over his shoulder.

"You can stop pretending you're asleep now." He whispers after he's sure Jacob can't see them anymore.

"Don't want to," she whines with a pout, " your chest is too comfy."

"And I can't believe you just handed me over to the enemy," she adds with a huff.

"I didn't hand you over to the enemy, I just saved you from him" he laughs, as he finally enters the little Inn, that's deserted at this hour, because the party outside is still in full swing.

"Then why are you carrying me to his room? Don't you think that entering the lion's den is just asking for trouble?"

"Well, I wouldn't go as far as to refer to Jacob as a Lion, but-"

"It's a metaphor, Finn"

"I know, and metaphors are important" he comically imitates her voice, while carrying her up the stairs.

"But it's not the Lion's den anymore when we have the keys, baby."

When he finally reaches number 13, he lowers her on her (still shoe-less) feet again and opens the door to a cozy little old fashioned room, with a little bathroom attached to it. The bed seems only just big enough for two people to fit in there if they'd be lying very close to each other, so Jacob definitely didn't have any pure thoughts when he offered Rachel his bed. Flipping a switch bathing the room in a dim light, Finn quickly pushes her inside and turns the lock on the door, to prevent anyone from coming in after them.

"Let's have some fun with Jewfro's stuff, shall we?" he smirks at Rachel, with a childlike twinkle in his eyes.

"Okay," she stretches the 'o' a little to indicate she isn't quite on board with his plan, "I'm just going to fresh up in the bathroom a little, while you can do your thing here, okay?"

"Right," he answers excited, already scanning the room for possible weird objects he might find.

Rachel opens the door to the bathroom and is immediately met with her own reflection, which to her horror looks utterly awful. She feels almost completely sobered up now, so she quickly brushes her teeth with a toothbrush provided by the hotel as she assesses the extent of the damage. Her eyes are all red and puffy, the little mascara and eyeliner she put on this morning now smudged on her face from the crying before, her cheeks are flushed and her once nicely braided hair currently looks like a poorly constructed bird's nest. Her dress is covered in dirty brown spots from sitting on the ground with Finn and there's a large rip at the side from getting stuck on that nail. To top it all off, her feet have turned nearly black from running around barefoot for the last two hours.

Hastily she grabs some items from her purse and tries to save what's left to save. When she's done, her face is as good as clean again, a little make-up re-applied, her hair hangs loose around her face in messy curls caused by the untangled braid and her feet have returned to their natural color. The dress will have to stay like it is for the time being, but it's better than nothing. When she opens the door to the bedroom again, Finn is waiting for her on the bed with a large smirk on his face.

"So…" he clears his throat when he sees her step out of the bathroom, "apparently you're looking for a hot hook-up tonight huh?" For a brief moment she stops breathing thinking he's being serious, but then she notices he's trying very hard to hold in his laughter. "I think I might have found one for you" he jokes, pulling a large brunette blow-up doll from under the bed, he just found between Jacob's stuff while Rachel was freshening up.

"Oh my God!" she shrieks in disgust, covering her face with her hands, "that's just so wrong on so many levels! Where did you even find that thing?"

"In his closet," he's holding his stomach from laughing too hard, "I can't wait to tell this to Puck, do you think he imagines it's you when he uses it?"

Finn's loving her reactions to his teasing a little too much and she has to try her hardest not to feel offended.

"Finn Christopher Hudson!" she gasps in shock, "I am appalled by the suggestion alone, so I kindly ask you to remove that thing from my sight and move over so I can join you on the bed."

Still laughing at his discovery, he gives her what she wants, and sends the doll flying through the room, making it land in the corner with a soft thud. "I'm sorry Rachel, but you can't tell me that wasn't funny" he chuckles, motioning her with his hands.

When she's close enough he reaches out for her and pulls her arm so she ends up in his lap, her face level with his. "You look much better than half an hour ago," he states, grinning cheekily at her face.

"Are you poking fun at me, Hudson?"

"I would never do that" he smiles that crooked smile, nudging the side of her face with his nose.

"I'm sorry about all of this by the way," Rachel tries to apologize fidgeting with a loose thread on his dress pants, "I kind of ruined the party for you."

"You didn't ruin anything, babe, I'd rather have a drunk and puking Rachel, than no Rachel at all, you know."

"Really?" she asks him softly, looking at his face.

"Really."

She impulsively pulls him in for a hug, until she's sure she's almost squeezing the life out of him. When they finally part, their faces are so close, she can feel his hot breath on her mouth and before she even knows what's happening he's leaning in to capture her parted lips with his for a scorching and long overdue kiss. His hand moves from her leg to lightly cup her cheek before they are forced to part for some much needed air.

He's staring at her intently, silently asking her for permission to proceed and slowly brushing her cheekbone with his thumb. Feeling bold, she links her arms behind his neck and gives him an almost imperceptible nod, cause _God_, she never wants him to stop kissing her like that.

Not needing any more encouragement, he dives in for a second kiss, this time guiding his tongue between her lips, searching for hers. It's not long before they're both heavily panting and he's softly pushing her against the matrass, his body familiarly hovering over hers.

Despite the heat that still lingers in the room, a trail of goose bumps covers her body when Finn starts placing wet kisses against her jaw line and her hands are trembling as she tries to undo the remaining buttons of his shirt. "Don't be nervous," he breaths against her lips, "It's just me". He takes one of her hands in his and sweetly kisses her palm before linking their fingers and for a moment it actually feels like their first time again. It's a strange, yet very familiar sensation to be with him like this after such a long time apart, but she's never felt more at home than she does right now.

And then clothes are shed, and suddenly hands are everywhere, touching every inch of free skin they can reach. The fact that they still haven' talked about their relationship status, and are currently glued to each other like Velcro, is hanging like a red warning sign above her head, but at this point she can't bring herself to care. She has been aching for this for months and now that it's finally happening, she's not going to be the one to stop it. They'll deal with the consequences later.

Somewhere between their wet kisses and urgent touches, Finn flips them over so that she's on top of him, pushing himself up and pulling her flush against him, causing her naked chest to collide with his. Their bodies are all sticky because of the heat and she can taste his salty sweat on her tongue when she places a trail of open-mouthed kisses from his neck right down to his collarbone. A soft gasp escapes her lips when he pushes his hips into hers, making her desperately ache for more. His hands are rough and clumsy, moving over her body in an agonizingly slow pace and she just wants him to touch her where she needs him most.

"Finn," she needily pants his name, grabbing onto his hand currently squeezing one of her boobs, encouraging him to go lower and when he finally reaches his destination, she cries out at the sudden sensation it's causing. She can feel his lips curve into a smile against her cheek as he moves his hand against her in a way only he can, and then it's not long before she starts unraveling on top of him, letting the familiar warmth take over her body, spreading from her center all the way to the tips of her toes. "I love you," he whispers in her ear as she comes down from her high and slacks against him, arms wrapped around his neck, gasping for air. He holds her tightly against him, while soothingly rubbing her lower back until she relaxes again.

"I love you too," she sighs against the curve of his jaw, "so much." He kisses her full on the mouth after that and nudges her hip a little, turns her so she's lying below him again, his body pressing into hers insistently, lips never leaving hers while he does so. Breath heavy from emotion, her fingers are making soft patterns on his skin, tracing the freckles on his face and caressing and rediscovering every part of him she can reach. Her hand is slowly making its way down his heaving chest, between their overheated bodies, sneaking lower when he suddenly stills her hand at his hipbone, sighing a soft "Don't- It's been too long" and giving her a little smile as he positions his hips perfectly between her legs. "Do we need-?" he exhales, a rushed whisper against her earlobe, "No," she hastily reassures him, "I'm still on birth control."

Unable to wait any longer, he finally pushes into her, making her gasp, and the room around them disappears as he starts moving, and their bodies reach a rhythm that's perfectly in synch. It's scares her sometimes just how effortlessly they fit, and right now she doesn't comprehend how she was able to live without him for so long. Her bangs are sticking to her forehead, and her fingers are all slippery when she runs them through the hairs at the nape of his neck. She bends her left leg then, hooking it around his backside, trying to push him even closer, which causes him to groan into her mouth. One of his hands moves up to cup her cheek, the other one disappearing between her legs and oh- he's making her see stars. She can feel that tightness inside of her reaching its peak and he swallows her desperate moans as a rush of electricity courses through her body, causing her to contract around him, making him follow right after, her name falling from his lips.

They stay connected like that for a while, lying on top of each other, breath labored and exchanging sweet kisses. The soft white sheets on the matrass are all crumpled and damp, their bodies flushed from the heat and exertion. When he finally rolls off of her, he pulls her with him tugging her into his side, legs tangled and their hands intertwined right over his heart.

"You okay?" he asks, leaning in to kiss the tip of her nose, lazily rubbing his thumb over her side.

"You really need to stop asking me that" she smiles, dimples appearing in her cheeks, "but if you really need to know then yes, more than okay."

"Oh my God," she tries to stifle her giggles in his shoulder "we just defiled Jacobs bed! You think we should go and return his keys now?"

"Nah, let him tough it out for the night, it will teach him. I'm sure he'll survive," a laugh reverberates from his chest, making her shake a little with him, "I don't think you'll have to send me that student film anymore, though," he teases, as he playfully squeezes her hip.

"Finn!" She giggles again, slapping his chest in mock offense, but soon after, leaning in to kiss his face, because she just can't not. "I prefer showing you the live version, anyway" she retorts cheekily, making him grin at her cute face.

"I've missed you," he mutters, as he runs a hand through her sticky hair, looking at her eyelids growing heavy.

The events of the day are catching up on her and her eyelashes are fluttering against his skin, "I'm sleepy." She yawns. It's more like totally worn out, and Finn's hand tracing lazy patterns on her heated skin isn't helping her stay awake.

"Then go to sleep, baby girl."

"No," she shakes her head, softly grabbing his cheek and making him look at her, "we need to talk first," she insist.

"We'll talk later, now close your eyes."

"Promise?" she finally relents, eyes falling closed and sleep overcoming her, secure in his embrace.

"I Promise."


End file.
